Figural pendant · D. R. Congo, Hungana · ID: 3032494
not available anymore
Provenance
C. Morlet Brussels, BelgiumCharles Ratton, Paris, France
Maurice Bonnefoy, Paris, France
Sotheby´s, New York, 19 May 2001, lot 216
Size
H: 7 cm
H: 2.8 inch
Description
ivory, shiny patina, in form of a kneeling square figure, min. dam., fissures through age, on wooden base;
with five thousand people the Hungana form one of the smallest ethnic group at the river of Kwango. Together with the Mbala they came from Angola under the leadership of Makoko.
Small ivory or bone figural amulets are the best known form of Hungana sculpture. The large-headed figures are usually female and they are always shown kneeling, a position suggesting submission throughout African art.
Comparing literature
Felix, Marc L., 100 Peoples of Zaire and their Sculpture, Brüssel 1987, p. 43, ill. 11